Bossa nova pioneer João Gilberto dead at 88

Grammy winner João Gilberto, considered one of the creators of the bossa nova genre, died Saturday at the age of 88.

“My father has passed,” confirmed his son Marcelo Gilberto on Facebook. “His fight was noble, he tried to maintain dignity in light of losing his sovereignty.”

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Gilberto, a singer and guitarist, helped create the distinctive bossa nova sound — the rhythmic blending of jazz and samba that emphasized melody over percussion — as it exploded throughout Brazil during the early 1960s.

The dulcet composition with the memorable lyrics: “When she walks, she’s like a samba that swings so cool and sways so gentle/That when she passes, each one she passes goes ‘ooh,’” was sung by his wife, Astrud, who was asked to perform by Getz, according to her biography.

The song won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1965, beating out heavy hitters The Beatles, Barbra Streisand, Louis Armstrong and Petula Clark.

Approaching 70, Gilberto won another Grammy for his 2000 work “João Voz E Violão,” which copped Best World Music Album.